MANSFIELD, Ohio — Trailing 12-0 at Madison on a soggy Friday night, the unbeaten Mount Vernon Yellow Jackets needed a spark.
What they got was a flame in the form of a jet named Nate Davis.
The 5-10, 165-pound senior state track star caught five passes for 252 yards and TDs of 89, 80 and 53 yards as Mount Vernon buried the Rams, 38-19, in a non-league football game at Madison.
Flashing his speed on defense, Davis also caught Madison super sophomore Tyrell Ajian from behind at the 2-yard line just before Ajian was about to score on a 50-yard pass play.
First-year Mount Vernon coach Justin Todd, who took Loudonville to the state playoffs several times in recent years, said his coaches find ways to get Davis involved.
“Our staff does a nice job of being creative in getting him the football. He’s a key for us. (Nate) is our hardest working kid.”
The win improved Mount Vernon’s record to 3-0. Madison slipped to 1-2.
Good Start Gone Bad: The Rams stymied the high-powered, five-wide, no-huddle Jackets offense in the first quarter, shutting out a team that came in averaging 52 points per game. Madison scored on a 3-yard run by senior Dakota Gombosch on the last play of the first quarter to take a 6-0 lead.
The Rams made it 12-0 on a 10-play, 73-yard drive with 7:27 left in the second, scoring on a 4-yard run by junior Gavin Ward (18 carries, 84 yards).
That’s when Davis supplied the torch, lifting Mount Vernon to three TDs and a 19-12 lead in the next four minutes.
He took a screen pass from senior QB Mason Williams and raced 89 yards for a TD with 7:09 left in the half. After the Jackets picked off a Madison pass on their next play, Williams connected with senior Owen Carpenter on MV’s first play, scoring from 22 yards away with still 6:49 left, tying the game at 12.
On the next Madison possession, junior Tresten Vail tossed his second interception with junior Cody Valrance returning it 74 yards for a TD, putting the Jackets on top to stay with still 3:09 left.
But MV wasn’t done. After forcing a three-and-out, Williams connected on an 80-yard pass to Davis with 1:27 left, giving the Jackets four TDs in the last seven minutes of the half and a 25-12 edge at the break.
First year Madison coach Jamie Masi said his team made too many mistakes.
“We felt good running the ball tonight (46 carries, 168 yards). We didn’t panic at halftime and came out in the second half committed to our gameplan. (But) you can’t turn the ball over five times (including three fumbles) and beat an average team, let alone a good team like Mount Vernon,” Masi said.
Jackets Containment: Mount Vernon limited Ajian, already offered D-1 scholarships, to three receptions for 118 yards and 43 yards on 11 carries. More importantly, Mount Vernon kept Ajian out of the endzone, tackling him twice inside the 5-yard line.
“I thought we did a decent job of containing Ajian tonight,” Todd said. “You can’t expect to stop someone with his talent. But we did a decent job of containing him.”
OCC Play Starts Now: The Rams begin play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference next Friday when Madison hosts West Holmes. Masi said he told his team their goals are still attainable.
“We set goals this season to do very well,” he said. “We wanted to win the OCC and make the playoffs. Those goals are not far-fetched for this team. Our whole season is still ahead of us.”
Statistically Speaking: Mount Vernon’s Williams completed 15 of 28 passes for 318 yards, five TDs and one interception. The Jackets rushed for just 41 yards on 23 attempts. … The Rams had 304 yards of total offense, including 136 through the air. … The Yellow Jackets scored 25 points in the first half while running just 15 plays from scrimmage. … Mount Vernon joins the OCC next season as Orrville departs.
